Testing a Theory
by Aoi Azarashi
Summary: A conversation led by curiosity becomes something...just a tad bit more. Gaara x Naruto. Set during the Chuunin exam arc. ONESHOT


Hey everyone! Wow it's been a while. Sorry I havn't updated in a long time, I promise I'll work on my other story soon. Anyways, this story just sorta came to me when I was spazzing in my history class lol, we were working in the computer lab so I just started typing it out then brought it home and finished it.

I hope you enjoy it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto or any of the characters.

**Testing a Theory**

Gaara tilted his head back as a light breeze blew past, ruffling his hair and stirring the ever-present sand that surrounded him. The moonlight danced along his fingertips as he held his hand out in front of him, illuminating the blood that stained his skin. Gaara closed his eyes and rested his elbows on bent knees, head tucked down so he could see nothing but the dark fabric of his clothes. Did the blood of others even satisfy him anymore? Give him the same thrill? The red-head let out a frustrated sigh and wiped his hands clean on the roof tiles beneath him. He had just pointlessly taken another life, and for what? To prove his pitiful existence?

Slowly he pulled a kunai out of his pack and held it to his wrist, trying not to aggravate the sand he knew would try and stop him. The blade had barely cut through the first layer of his sand armor before it suddenly reacted, throwing the kunai from his hand and into the wall of the neighboring building. Gaara cursed at the demon within him and growled in frustration. He could kill hundreds with just the flick of his wrist but couldn't even lay a scratch on himself if he tried. He was tired of being feared by those around him, tired of being used as a tool…tired of being alone.

He wondered briefly what would happen if he just let himself sleep. If he couldn't kill himself why not let someone else kill him? Surely if he let Shukaku loose Konoha would do everything in their power to stop him. Of course that was already the plan, but why do it when he would have allies to protect him? If he did it now he would definitely be eliminated.

Having made up his mind, Gaara leaned against the slant of the roof behind him and closed his eyes. He focused on leveling his breathing, using everything he knew about meditation to try and lull himself to sleep. His eyelids had finally begun to feel heavy, the weight of years without proper rest finally catching up to him, when the sudden arrival of another ninja brought him back to alertness. He had half expected it to be Baki, or perhaps one of his siblings, but never did he expect when he opened his eyes to see Uzumaki Naruto, in all his orange-clad glory, standing a few feet away from him with a contemplative look on his face.

"What do you want?" Gaara demanded, irritated at having been interrupted.

"You are a jinchuuriki," came the simple reply, and Gaara almost gasped at the shockingly blunt statement.

"What makes you think that?" he sneered, not comfortable with the casual reference the blonde made to his cursed life.

"I can see the sadness in your eyes. It matches my own."

Gaara glared at the boy in front of him, practically radiating hostility as he resisted the urge to kill again that night. "You know nothing of what it is like to have Shukaku sealed within you."

"No, but I know exactly what it is like to have Kyuubi sealed within me."

Gaara's eyes widened slightly at the admission and stared at the blonde in disbelief, "You are also a jinchuuriki?"

Naruto nodded his head in confirmation. "Of the nine-tailed fox demon."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I don't know actually," Naruto laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It just seemed like a good idea at the time."

"Why do you act so happy?"

"Huh?"

"Why do you act so happy?" Gaara asked again. "Don't the villagers hate you?"

Naruto let out a heavy sigh, and ran his hand over his face before sitting down on the tiled roof. "They do hate me; the parents at least. But the Hokage forbade everyone from telling my generation I am the demon carrier. It helps, some, but I still feel the scorn directed towards my back when I walk down the streets. I act happy because I don't want to give them the satisfaction of beating me down. I refuse to be looked down upon when I have done nothing wrong. I act stupid, and foolish, just so people acknowledge me, but one day, I will be the Hokage, and everyone will be forced to look up to me."

Gaara stared at Naruto in wonderment, puzzled at how someone with such a similar fate as him managed to be so optimistic. "Don't you ever get tired?"

"I'm done feeling tired." Naruto replied. "I'm done with crying, done with wallowing in self pity. I have never believed Kyuubi makes me a monster and I won't give up until everyone else believes it too. I've realized that if I don't want to be alone, I need to make the effort to gain the trust of those around me." Naruto reached out to put a hand on Gaara's shoulder, but the sand from his gourd suddenly shot out and created a shield, forcing the blonde to pull his hand back out of reflex.

"The sand moves on its own to protect me." Gaara murmured, "Even if I wanted to let someone near me, Shukaku would not permit it."

"Even if they meant no harm?"

"I am not sure…no one has ever tried to approach me without a killing intent."

"Well let's test it then." Naruto slowly slid closer to the red-head beside him, pausing every time he noticed the sand getting agitated.

Gaara stared in disbelief as the blonde drew nearer, inwardly panicking at the decreasing distance between them. "What are you doing?"

"Just testing a theory." Naruto replied, stopping just an inch from his body. Carefully he reached out his hand, again pausing each time the sand began to move. Finally his fingers touched the sleeve of Gaara's shirt, and when the sand showed no sign of protesting, Naruto slowly trailed them up his arm and rested his hand on his shoulder.

Gaara raised his shocked gaze to meet Naruto's, and found the blonde grinning in triumph. If it wasn't for the sand threatening to attack at any given moment, he would have bet that Naruto would be whooping in delight. "Are you done?"

"Not quite, I wanna try a few more things." Resuming the slow pace of which he had started before, Naruto ran his fingers up the side of Gaara's neck and marveled at the texture. "It feels…grainy." He commented.

"My body is covered with an armor of sand. That's not my skin you're touching."

"Oh…can you feel me touching you?"

"Not really. I don't even feel the sand." Gaara shifted uncomfortably under Naruto's curious gaze, trying to push down the panic the close proximity was causing.

"Do you want to feel it? Let the armor down for just a moment."

Gaara swallowed thickly as he suddenly felt nervous. Let down his armor? He had never let down his armor in the presence of another person; he rarely even let it down when he was alone. By removing his armor he would be exposing himself. Could he trust Naruto enough to do that?

Yes, the look in the blonde's eyes told him he could.

Hesitantly, Gaara withdrew the chakra from the sand that surrounded his body, and closed his eyes as it fell from his skin and pooled around his feet. His eyes opened again to stare at Naruto as his hand began to move further up his neck, brushing along his jaw line before cupping his cheek.

"It's so soft," The blonde marveled, and moved his free hand to intertwine it with Gaara's. "Even your hands."

"I've never needed to train in hand-to-hand combat, or use it before." Gaara whispered. "This feels nice…warm."

Naruto stared into the light green eyes only inches from his own, fascinated by the myriad of emotions that seemed to be swimming within their depths. He'd never seen anyone this up close, this open before.

Still mindful of the sand in the gourd, Naruto slowly leaned closer until his forehead rested against Gaara's, and closed his eyes. "Just one more test," he breathed, then captured the other's lips in a kiss.

Gaara sat frozen for a moment, heart beating wildly as he tried to figure out what was happening. He felt incredibly warm and light, like none of his troubles even mattered. He felt…happy? A tongue tracing his bottom lip quickly brought him out of his musings, and before he could even think about it, he granted it access before wrapping his free arm around the back of Naruto's neck and pulling him closer.

Their lips slowly parted, and Gaara gazed up through cloudy eyes as Naruto slid his hand up the side of his face to trace the kanji adorning his forehead. "I can show you what this means." He whispered.

"Will that be testing another theory?" Gaara closed his eyes as Naruto's finger brushed the sensitive skin.

"No, no more testing. Just experiencing, and trusting." Naruto smiled and threaded his fingers into Gaara's hair. "And building a relationship." Gaara barely had time to return the smile before Naruto had reclaimed his lips and pushed him against the tiles of the roof behind them.

* * *

Thank you for reading! Please review so I know if you liked it or didn't like it. Also please feel free to point out any mistakes or give suggestions for improvememt. Thanks!


End file.
